The survey suggested Americans may see Obama in a very different light
from his predecessor, George W. Bush, who launched the Afghanistan and
Iraq wars with some allies but was widely seen as a go-it-alone leader.

In a sign of political division, the top Republican in Congress, House
of Representatives Speaker John Boehner, on Wednesday sharpened his
criticism of Obama, saying he was 'troubled that U.S. military resources
were committed to war without clearly defining ... what the mission in
Libya is and what America's role is in achieving that mission.'

The criticism comes after senior figures in the White House today labelled the Libyan bombings as a 'kinetic military action'.

In a desperate bid to avoid using the word 'war', deputy national security adviser Ben Rhodes called U.S. operations in the Mediterranean a 'kinetic military action'.

This is the first time any official has attempted to provide an answer to what the White House are calling Libya after repeated denials it is an all-out war.

Many have accused the Obama administration of merely attempting to describe the bombings as anything other than a war to a dubious public.

Mr Rhodes said: 'I think what we are doing is enforcing a resolution that has a very clear set of goals, which is protecting the Libyan people, averting a humanitarian crisis, and setting up a no-fly zone.

'Obviously that involves kinetic military action, particularly on the front end.'

Preparing: Rebel fighters take a break along the Benghazi-Ajdabiyah road after five days of bombing by western forces

The uncertain U.S. definition came as coalition forces tried to broker a deal allowing NATO to take over military operations in Libya.

In heated debate, it looked today as if the U.S., France and the U.K. had persuaded other members of the alliance to accept NATO as the primary military driver of the operation.